While the County Grand Orange Lodge of Belfast will be marching to Ormeau Park in May, the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland are going one better later in the year. As the rhyme might go:
Oh, the
Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland,grand old Duke of York
He hadquite a lot of men;ten thousand
He marched them up to the top of the Hill,
And he marched them down again.
That’s right. Edward Carson’s statue in front of Parliament Buildings in Stormont Estate is the venue for parade.
A BBC NI news online article explains more about the Covenant commemoration march and rally:
It is understood to be the first time in living memory that the estate will have hosted a formal Orange event.
Approval for the Grand Orange Lodge to use the estate has been given by the Finance Minister Sammy Wilson.
The centenary committee plan to have the speaker’s platform next to Sir Edward Carson’s statue in front of parliament buildings, home of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
In a statement, the Department of Finance and Personnel (DFP) said that permission had been granted “subject to detailed arrangements and relevant paperwork in relation to the event being agreed with the department’s Estate Management Unit and other relevant authorities”.
From Poc Fada to Formula 1 to Rally Ireland to Red Bull Soapbox racing to Pudsey to Orange Men … all Folks on the Hill!
Image via Wikipedia
Alan Meban. Tweets as @alaninbelfast. Blogs about cinema and theatre over at Alan in Belfast. A freelancer who writes about and reports from civic, academic and political events, reviews cultural performances, chairs discussions, and live-tweets, streams and records lectures and conferences. He delivers social media training, coaching and consultancy, produces podcasts, is a member of Ofcom’s Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland, FactCheckNI board member, and is a member of the Corrymeela Community.